Ma Chao led his army to attack the surrounding counties one by one with overwhelming force, and all the cities fell into Ma Chao's hands.
It wasn't until they attacked the fourth county that they couldn't bear it any longer and directly stationed themselves where they were.
At this moment, Ma Chao looked extremely ugly. Without exception, all the cities he captured were empty.
There were not even a few ordinary people living inside, and it looked like they had fled to the surrounding areas of Chang'an overnight.
These counties all opened their doors, the streets were empty, and Ma Chao had no desire to capture them.
Originally, he just thought that the surrounding troops were a little empty, but he didn't expect that there were no troops at all.
Cao Jun actually abandoned all these cities, which made Ma Chao's clenched fist hit the air.
"Everyone, stay where you are!"
"Go and notify Sima Yi and ask him to take the remaining soldiers, food, grass and baggage to station here."
"In addition, send 10,000 troops to search the surrounding counties and counties."
Ma Chao's eyes showed a hint of boredom. For him, Cao Jun's surrender of these empty cities to him was tantamount to humiliating him.
It was also because of the short confrontation with Cao Jun that he was holding back his anger and could not vent it.
Then, Sima Yi quickly arrived here.
"General."
Hearing this familiar voice, Ma Chao took a breath, looked at him and asked, "Father, when will their army arrive?"
Sima Yi thought for a moment and said, "Probably today and tomorrow."
Ma Chao asked with sharp eyes: "Maybe?"
Seeing Ma Chao's look, Sima Yi had long been used to it, and then said calmly: "The march of a hundred thousand troops will naturally be slower. If there is a road collapse or heavy rain, it may be delayed for two days."
"However, no scouts came to report. This is also my personal guess."
Looking at Ma Chao in front of him, he could already guess that Ma Chao could not wait to lead his army to fight Cao Jun.
Sima Yi already knew Ma Chao's temper very well, so he persuaded him softly: "General, there is no need to be impatient. Cao's army relies on the danger of the Wei River to hold on. Even if the army comes for a while, it will not be able to cross the water and fight."
"Chang'an is now easy to defend but difficult to attack. General, please don't be impulsive."
Ma Chao glanced at Sima Yi and said with a smile: "Zhongda, you better understand what I mean."
Then he threw the book aside and walked towards the school grounds.
At this time, Sima Yi took the scroll in his hand and read it carefully, then smiled lightly.
For him, Xiliang is the best choice. Ma Teng and Ma Chao are not resourceful people, and the troops here are strong.
There were no other counselors under Xiliang, only Sima Zhongda.
Although he does not have a prominent position in Xiliang now, after he has gained Ma Teng and Ma Chao's complete trust, he will be able to make Ma Teng and Ma Chao exceed his expectations with just a little trick.
It is still uncertain whether the lord of Xiliang is named Ma or Sima.
Sima Yi neatly placed the books in his hands aside, with a smile on his lips.
At night, when it was just dawn, all the soldiers in Chencang County, where Ma Chao was currently stationed, were awakened.
The sound coming back from outside made the earth shake, and the deep sound made it impossible to sleep anymore.
Some soldiers even panicked.
"This is."
"Could it be an enemy attack?"
These soldiers were all 20,000 soldiers that Ma Chao borrowed from Zhang Lu, and the soldiers among the Xiliang cavalry all showed a smile.
"The Xiliang army has arrived."
These roaring sounds are produced by countless horses trampling the earth.
Looking at the entire Han Dynasty, who can have so many cavalry?
Only Xiliang!
Most of the soldiers in Xiliang are cavalry, and all the soldiers in Xiliang all show a hint of fighting spirit. The army has already arrived, are you still afraid that they will not be able to defeat Sizhou?
Ma Chao also looked excited. Is an army of 100,000 still afraid of the small Weishui River?
He personally came outside the city to welcome Ma Teng's arrival.
"Haha, father, you are finally here."
Ma Teng nodded lightly and said in a slightly deep voice: "The supplies from the Qiang tribe were a little late, which delayed a lot of time."
Ma Teng of Xiliang has had good relations with the Qiang people for generations, and even Ma Chao's mother was a Qiang.
So when I heard Ma Teng talk about this, I didn't notice anything strange.
Ma Teng looked at Sima Yi and asked, "Zhongda, how is the situation in Sizhou now?"
Ma Teng naturally knew Sima Yi's talents, so he asked directly.
I saw Sima Yi bowing and saying: "My lord, Sizhou is now bounded by the Weishui River, and Cao Jun has withdrawn all his troops and people."
Hearing this, Ma Teng looked thoughtful, but there was an unstoppable smile on his lips.
"I didn't expect that Cao Jun didn't have any troops in Sizhou, but he was willing to give up all these counties. God help me!"
At this moment, the 100,000 troops behind him were stationed in Chencang. Among the 100,000 troops, 80,000 were cavalry and only 20,000 soldiers.
Xiliang is also the only prince with more cavalry than infantry, just like most of the soldiers in Jiangdong are well versed in water.
The soldiers of Xiliang have learned equestrian skills since childhood, and even learned Qiang fighting because of their relationship with the Qiang people.
Ma Teng showed a smile and said: "Everyone rest immediately, and we will send troops to the Wei River at noon."
"Now that Cao Cao's Sizhou is empty, now is a rare opportunity."
Hearing that Ma Teng gave the order directly without even caring about himself, Sima Yi unconsciously wanted to dissuade him.
Although this Sizhou was empty, he always felt that there were many doubts, as if there was something wrong somewhere.
But he couldn't tell it at all, and Ma Teng even sent troops in the name of seizing the opportunity.
After hesitating again and again, he fell into deep thought. In his opinion, there must be something wrong with Sizhou, but he couldn't find the problem.
Finally, he sighed and said, "That's all, I was still too cautious."
Two hours later, the Xiliang cavalry had been reorganized. It seemed that as long as Ma Teng gave the order, they could directly cross the Wei River and take Chang'an.
Ma Teng looked at the 80,000 troops behind him and showed a hint of pride. This is the Han's first cavalry, the Xiliang Iron Cavalry!
With the support of the Qiang and Hu people, he expanded the size of the cavalry to 80,000 people, and these 80,000 people were not just random fish that could sneak in.
They are all elites who are good at riding. If there is a head-on confrontation, Ma Teng is completely confident that he can defeat Chang'an.
Even now, Cao's cavalry probably only has 40,000 to 50,000 at most.
Compared to the time when the world was in chaos, when all horses were requisitioned as war horses, the standards are obviously more stringent now.
The cavalry of today cannot be said in the same way as the cavalry of the past.
Ma Teng roared loudly, with a stern look in his eyes: "All officers and soldiers obey the order!"
All the soldiers raised their spears high and then put them down heavily.
There was a "bang" sound and the sky was filled with yellow sand.